Binge-Watching 2025's Christmas Films: The Hits, The Misses, and The Guilty Pleasures.

It is the time of year to relax on the couch and consume a box of mince pies in front of a terrific flick, a bad movie, or one that’s so bad it’s good.

As always, a crop of new Christmas films hopes to be part of our seasonal watchlist—potentially even finding a spot alongside timeless staples like Home Alone, Elf, Love Actually, and Die Hard (we won’t debate it).

So, in a vital public service to distinguish the gems from the coal, and to embrace the Christmas spirit, I binged as many recent festive movies as possible in a single day.

7.17am - A Very Jonas Christmas Movie

Kicking off, optimistically, on a positive note. This is the only 2025 title on a popular review site's list of the best 100 holiday films of all time.

The Jonas Brothers end up trapped in the UK after concluding their global concert series and must get home for Christmas. Their attempts are hampered by an evil Santa, who bursts into melody to state they won’t get home until they “rediscover their familial spark.”

The repartee between the squabbling siblings is entertaining even for the non-fan, while devotees will certainly catch lots of references as they attempt to get back using every mode of travel possible.

It’s private planes, trains and automobiles.

It’s not a timeless masterpiece, but is excellent for devotees and a positive start to the day.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 for Jonas Brothers fans or 🎄🎄🎄 for their family members who are obliged to sit through it.

Late Morning: Tinsel Town

A-list actor Kiefer Sutherland appears as a movie actor tricked into a pantomime.

“A panto-what?” asks Sutherland’s “difficult” and ageing star Brad Mack, who has seen better days and whose manager has tricked him into thinking he’s appearing in prestigious English theatre.

His pantomime co-stars tell him he’s playing Buttons. “Absolutely not,” he retorts. It's easy to predict their reply. Except if you’re not acquainted with traditional panto catchphrases.

There are some very funny lines, some cockle-warming storylines, and the rest of the cast is excellent, too.

It’s the sort of feature that would be a bit naff at any other time of year, but is a highly enjoyable at Christmas.

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄🎄

A New Spin on Scrooge

An actor appears at the beginning of this film, too, delivering a signature line for the next movie straight. Could this be a budding festive ritual?

This time, he’s a crooning chauffeur who picks up Mr Sood, the latest spin on Mr Scrooge from Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.

Mr Sood is played by an actor from Kunal Nayyar and Christmas Karma is directed by Bend It Like Beckham’s Gurinder Chadha. The classic narrative develops as the tight-fisted Mr Sood is haunted by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future, played by Hugh Bonneville, Billy Porter, and Boy George.

This Indian Scrooge is at least distinct from all the others, but sadly he’s not very captivating and Nayyar’s portrayal is wooden—a major flaw when he’s so central to everything.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄

Lunchtime: Stuffed

There's just enough time for a network's original festive film—which stars Guz Khan as a endearingly grumpy man who “avoids Christmas.”

But after he receives an £8,000 Christmas bonus at work, his wife (played by Morgana Robinson) convinces him blowing the money on a holiday to Lapland.

There’s just one problem—he finds out there was an mistake with his bonus, which should have been £800, and he has to figure out how to return the difference.

Pleasant yet unmemorable.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

A Classy Netflix Romance

This is one of those holiday movies where the festive trappings are in the setting—Christmas is the setting of the film rather than its raison d’etre—but it feels warm and holiday-like all the same.

Driven corporate star Sydney (starring Minka Kelly) is sent to a French chateau to secure an acquisition for a sparkling wine company. During her travels, she encounters a man in a book store who offers to show her Christmas in Paris.

A critic recently claimed this is the finest new Christmas film of the recent era. That’s a bit of a overstatement, but it is a holiday love story with a dash of elegance and gives the obligatory heartwarming sensation.

The scene with a detailed conversation about Die Hard is particularly strong too.

Christmas tree rating: 🎄🎄🎄

A Charming Quest

Young Chris, played by Lenny Rush, continues to believe in Father Christmas, in spite of the efforts of his dad (starring James Buckley) to tell him the truth.

The truth is to be discovered, and Chris sets out to find it with the assistance of a group of well-known figures.

It’s gentle but sweet, and good viewing while expecting Santa to visit.

Festive score: 🎄🎄🎄

4.39pm - Oh. What. Fun.

Michelle Pfeiffer is the matriarch of a quarrelling American family who come back together for the holidays—including other acclaimed actress Felicity Jones, Chloe Grace Moretz, Jason Schwartzman, and dad Denis Leary.

Pfeiffer starts by mentioning holiday staples like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, It’s A Wonderful Life and Home Alone, before declaring: “They need to make a movie about the true heroes of the holidays—moms.”

So that’s the premise, but in reality it’s really a jumble of those aforementioned movies, at least until Pfeiffer’s character eventually finds her strength.

Festive score: 🎄🎄

Formulaic Fun

The day’s taken a dip, but thankfully here’s a new offering in the crowded field of formulaic, schmaltzy, badly acted—and utterly watchable—holiday fare.

It’s a story as familiar as can be: An American woman travels to a distant snowy land and ends up finding romance.

In this case, Caprice Bourret plays a publisher